#THE INDIAN MUSEUM ACT, 1910 
_______ 

##ARRANGEMENT OF SECTIONS 
________ 

###PRELIMINARY 

SECTIONS 

1. Short title and commencement. 

###INCORPORATION OF THE TRUSTEES 

2. Constitution and incorporation of the Trustees of the Indian Museum. 

3. Minimum number of Trustees and quorum. 

4. Power to appoint new Trustees. 

5. [Omitted.]. 

PROPERTY AND POWERS OF THE TRUSTEES 

6. Property vested in or placed under the control of the Trustees. 

7. Power to Trustees to exchange, sell and destroy articles in collections. 

8. Power to Trustees to make bye-laws. 

9. Power of Trustees to appoint officers and servants.  

DUTIES OF THE TRUSTEES 

10. Budget 

10A. Annual report and accounts. 

11. Collections of Asiatic Society to be kept distinguished in the museum. 

12. Articles received in exchange or purchased and moneys realised from sale to be held on 
trust. 

SUPPLEMENTAL PROVISIONS 

12A. Power of Central Government to issue directions to Trustees. 

13. Officers under Act to be public servants. 

14. Power to Trustees to keep collections not belonging to them. 

15. Power to Trustees to part with certain property in their possession.  

15A. Power to make rules. 

16. Property in collections on determination of trust. 

17. [Repealed.].

THE SCHEDULE.
 
 
 
#THE INDIAN MUSEUM ACT, 1910 

##ACT NO. 10 OF 1910 

[18th March, 1910.] 

An Act to consolidate and amend the law relating to the Indian Museum. 

WHEREAS it is expedient to consolidate and amend the law relating to the Indian Museum; It is 
hereby enacted as follows:— 

PRELIMINARY 

1. **Short title and commencement.**—(1) This Act may be called the Indian Museum Act, 1910. 

(2) It shall come into force on such date as the Central Government, by notification in the Official 
Gazette, may direct. 

###INCORPORATION OF THE-TRUSTEES 

2. **Constitution and incorporation of the Trustees of the Indian Museum.**— (1)  The 
Trustees of the Indian Museum (hereinafter referred to as the Trustees) shall be— 

(a) the Governor of West Bengal, *ex officio* Chairman; 

(b) the Secretary to the. Government of India in the Ministry concerned with matters relating to 
the Indian Museum, *ex officio*; 

(c) the Mayor of the Corporation of Calcutta, *ex officio*; 

(d) the Vice-Chancellor of the University of Calcutta, *ex officio*; 

(e) the Accountant-General, West Bengal, *ex officio*; 

(f)  four  persons  to  be  nominated  by  the  Central  Government,  one  of  whom  shall  be  a 
representative  of  commerce  and  industry  chosen  in  consultation  with  the  Government  of 
West Bengal; 

(g) one person to be nominated by the Government of West Bengal; 

(h) one person to be nominated by the Council of the Asiatic Society, Calcutta: 

Provided that if any of the Trustees referred to in clauses (b), (c) (d) and (e) is unable to attend any 
meeting  of  the  Trustees,  he  may,  with  the  previous  approval  of  the  Chairman,  authorise  a  person  in 
writing to do so.

(2) The Trustees shall be a body corporate, by the name of “The Trustees of the Indian Museum”, 
with perpetual  succession  and  a  common  seal,  and  in  that  name  shall  sue  and  be  sued,  and  shall  have 
power to acquire and hold property, to enter into contracts, and to do all acts necessary for and consistent 
with the purposes of this Act. 

(3) The nominated Trustees shall, save as herein otherwise provided, hold office for a period of three 
years: 

Provided that the authority nominating a Trustee may extend his term of office for one or more like 
periods. 

3. **Minimum number of Trustees and quorum.**—(1) The powers of the said body corporate may 
only be exercised so long and so often as there are six members thereof. 

(2) The quorum necessary for the transaction of business at a meeting of the Trustees shall not be less 
than four.
 
4. **Power to appoint stew Trustees.**—If a nominated Trustee— 

(a) dies, or 

(b) is absent from the meetings of the Trustees for more than twelve consecutive months, or 

(c) desires to be discharged, or 

(d) refuses or becomes incapable to act, or 

(e) is  appointed  to  perform  the  duties  of any of the offices specified in clauses (a) to (e) of 
sub-section (1) of section 2, 

the authority which nominated the Trustee may nominate a new Trustee in his place. 

5. *[Vacation  of  office  by  existing  Trustees.]  omitted  by the  Indian  Museum 
(Amendment) Act*, 1960 (45 of 1960), s. 5. 

###PROPERTY AND POWERS OF THE TRUSTEES 

6. **Property vested in or placed under the control of the Trustees.**— (1) All the property, 
whether movable or immovable, which at the commencement of this Act is held by the Trustees of the 
Indian Museum constituted by the Indian Museum Act, 1876 (22 of 1876) on trust for the purposes of the 
said  Museum  shall,  together  with  any  such  property  which  may  hereinafter  be  given,  bequeathed, 
transferred or acquired for the said purposes, vest in the Trustees of the Indian Museum constituted by 
this Act on trust for the purposes of the said Museum: 

Provided that the Trustees may expend the capital of any portion of such property which may consist 
of money on the maintenance, improvement and enlargement of the collections deposited in, presented to 
or purchased for, the said Museum or otherwise for the purposes of the same as they may think fit. 

(2) The Trustees shall have the exclusive possession, occupation and control, for the purposes of such 
trust,  of  the  land  specified  in  the  schedule,  including  any  buildings  which  may  have  been,  or  may 
hereafter be, erected thereon, other than those portions thereof which have been set apart by the Trustees 
for the records and offices of the Geological Survey of India. 

7. **Power to Trustees to exchange, sell and destroy articles in collections.**—Subject  to  the 
provisions of any bye-laws made in this behalf, the Trustees may, from time to time,— 

(a) deliver, by way of loan, to any person the whole or any portion of, or any article contained in, 
any collection vested in them under this Act; 

(b) exchange or sell duplicates of articles contained in any such collection and take or purchase, 
in the place of such duplicates, such articles as may in their opinion be worthy of preservation in the 
Museum; 

(c) present duplicates of articles contained in any such collection to other Museums in India; 
and 

(d) remove and destroy any article contained in any such collection. 

8. **Power to Trustees to make bye-laws.**—(1) the  Trustees  may  from  time  to  time,  with  the 
previous  sanction  of  the  Central  Government, make by notification in the Official Gazette, bye-laws 
consistent with this Act and the rules made thereunder for any purpose necessary for the execution of 
their trust.

(2) In particular and without prejudice to the generality of the foregoing power, such bye-laws may provide 
for— 

(a) the summoning, holding and adjournment of general and special meetings of the Trustees; 

(b) the securing of the attendance of Trustees at such meetings; 

(c) the provision and keeping of minute-books and account-books; 

(d) the compiling of catalogues; 

(e) the lending of articles contained in the collections vested in the Trustees; 

(f) the  exchange  and  sale,  and  the  presentation  to  other  Museums  in India, of  duplicates  of  articles 
contained in such collections; 

(g) the removal and destruction of articles contained in such collections; and 

(h) the general management of the Museum. 

(3) The Central Government shall cause every bye-law made under this section to be laid as soon as may be 
after it is made, before each House of Parliament, while it is in session, for a total period of thirty days which may 
be  comprised  in  one  session  or  in  two  or  more  successive  sessions,  and  if,  before  the  expiry  of  the  session 
immediately  following  the  session  or  the  successive  sessions  aforesaid,  both  Houses  agree  in  making  any 
modification  in  the  bye-law  or  both  Houses  agree  that  the  bye-law  should  not  be  made,  the  bye-law  shall 
thereafter have effect only in such modified form or be of no effect, as the case may be; so, however, that any such 
modification  or  annulment  shall  be  without  prejudice  to  the  validity  of  anything  previously  done  under  that 
bye-law.

9. **Power of Trustees to appoint officers and servants.**—(1) Subject to the provisions of sub-section (2), 
the Trustees  may  appoint  such  officers  and  servants  as  they  may  consider  necessary  or  proper  for  the  care  or 
management of the trust-property, and determine their functions. 

(2)  The  recruitment  and  the  conditions  of  service  of  such  officers  and  servants  shall  be  regulated  by  rules 
made under this Act.

###DUTIES OF THE TRUSTEES 

10. **Budget.**—The Trustees  shall,  by  such date in  each financial  year as  may  be  specified by  the  Central 
Government, submit to that Government for approval, in the form specified by that Government in consultation 
with the Comptroller and Auditor-General of India, the budget of the next financial year, showing the estimated 
receipts and expenditure during the next financial year. 

10A. **Annual report and accounts.**—(1) The Trustees shall, as soon as possible after the commencement of 
each financial year, submit— 

(a) to the Central Government within such time or date as may be specified by the Central Government, a 
report giving a true and full account of their activities during the previous financial year and an account of the 
activities likely to be undertaking during the current financial year; 

(b) to such auditor as the Central Government may appoint in this behalf, accounts of all moneys 
expended by the Trustees during the previous financial year, supported by the necessary vouchers. 

(2) The Trustees shall cause such report and accounts to be published annually for general information.

11. **Collections of Asiatic Society to be kept distinguished in the Museum.**—(1) The Trustees shall 
cause  every  article  in  the  collections  in  the  said  Indian  Museum  formerly  belonging  to  the  Asiatic  Society  of 
Bengal (now  known  as  the  Asiatic  Society,  Calcutta) and  all  additions  that  may  hereafter  be  made  thereto 
otherwise than by purchase under section 6, to be marked and numbered and (subject to the provisions contained 
in sections 7 and 16) to be kept and preserved in the said Museum with such marks and numbers. 

(2) An inventory of such additions shall be made by the said Society, one copy whereof shall be signed by the 
Trustees and delivered to the said society, and another copy shall be signed by the Council of the said Society and 
delivered  to  the  Trustees,  and  shall  be  kept  by  them  along  with  the  inventory  delivered  to  the  predecessors  in 
office of the Trustees when the said collections were deposited in the said Museum. 

12. **Articles  received  in  exchange  or  purchased  and  moneys  realised  from  sale  to  be  held  on 
trust.**—All objects taken in exchange and articles purchased under section 7 and all moneys realised from sales 
made  in  accordance  with  the  terms  of  the  same  section  shall  be  held  on  trust  and  subject  to  powers  and 
declarations corresponding as nearly as may be with the trusts, powers and declarations by this Act limited and 
declared. 

###SUPPLEMENTAL PROVISIONS 

12A. **Power of Central Government to issue directions to Trustees.**—(1) In the discharge of their 
functions  under  this  Act,  the  Trustees  shall  be  bound  by  such  directions  on  questions  of  policy  as  the 
Central Government may give to them from time to time: 

Provided that the Trustees shall be given an opportunity to express their views before any direction is given 
under this sub-section. 

(2) The decision of the Central Government whether a question is one of policy or not shall be final.

13. **Officers under Act to be public servants.**—All officers and servants appointed under this Act shall 
be deemed to be public servants within the meaning of the Indian Penal Code (45 of 1860); . 

14. **Power to Trustees to keep collections not belonging to them.**—  Notwithstanding  anything 
hereinbefore contained, the Trustees may, if they think fit, with the previous sanction of the Central Government 
and subject in each case to such conditions as it may approve and to such rules as it may prescribe, assume the 
custody and administration of collections which are not the property of the Trustees for the purposes of their trust 
under this Act, and keep and preserve such collections either in the Indian Museum or elsewhere: 

Provided that if the trust constituted by this Act is at any time determined, any such collections shall not by 
reason of their then being in the Indian Museum become the property of Government. 

15. **Power to Trustees to part with certain property in their possession.**—Subject to such 
conditions as the Central Government may approve, the Trustees may deliver possession of the whole or 
any part of the property described in the schedule to such person as that Government may appoint.

15A. **Power to make rules.**—(1)  The  Central  Government  may,  in  consultation  with  the  Trustees,  by 
notification in the Official Gazette, make rules to carry out the purposes of this Act. 

(2) In particular, and without prejudice to the generality of the foregoing power, such rules may provide for all 
or any of the following matters, namely:— 

  (a) the recruitment and the conditions of service of the officers and servants of the Museum; 

  (b) the  form  and  manner  in  which  the  accounts  of  the  Museum  may  be  maintained  and  the  manner  in 
which such accounts may be audited; 

  (c) the circumstances in which and the conditions subject to which the Trustees may assume the 
custody  and  administration  of  any  collections  referred  to  in  section  14  and  keep  and  preserve  such 
collections; 

  (d) the conditions subject to which the Trustees may deliver possession of any property in their possession 
to any other person. 

(3) Every rule made under this section shall be laid as soon as may be after it is made before each House of 
Parliament while it is in session for a total period of thirty days which may be comprised in one session or in two 
or  more  successive  sessions,  and  if,  before  the  expiry  of  the  session  immediately  following  the  session or the 
successive sessions aforesaid, both Houses agree in making any modification in the rule, or both Houses agree 
that the rule should not be made, the rule shall thereafter have effect only in such modified form or be of no effect, 
as the case may be; so however that any such modification or annulment shall be without prejudice to the validity 
of anything previously done under that rule.

16. **Property in collections on determination of trust.**—If the trust constituted by this Act is at any time 
determined,— 

(a) the  collections  and  additions  mentioned  in  section  11  shall  become  the  property  of  the  said  Asiatic 
Society or their assigns, and 

(b) all the other collections then in the said Indian Museum shall, save as otherwise provided by section 
14, become the property of Government. 

17. *[Repeals.]. Rep. by the Repealing and Amending Act, 1914 (10 of 1914), s. 3 and the Second 
Schedule*. 





##THE SCHEDULE 

(See sections 6 and 15) 

Land bounded— 
  on the north side by the premises No. 2, Sudder Street, and by Sudder Street; 

  on  the  west  side  by  Chowringhee  Road  and  by  the  premises  No.  29,  Chowringhee  Road  (occupied  by  the 
Bengal United Service Club); 

  on  the  south  side  by  the  premises  No.  29,  Chowringhee  Road,  by  Kyd  Street,  and  by  the  premises  No.  4, 
Chowringhee Lane, and 

  on the east, side by the premises No. 15, Kyd Street, and the premises Nos. 4, 3, 2 and 1, Chowringhee Lane. 

together with all bluildings, roads and tanks existing or erected thereon, and all casements appertaining thereto. 